O'Toole snubs Baftas as he chases an Oscar

Film legend Peter O'Toole is snubbing tonight's Bafta Awards as he chases his first Best Actor Oscar in his 50-year career.

The 74-year-old star is a strong contender to pick up Bafta's Best Actor award for his role in Venus, the critically-acclaimed British film about an elderly actor who looks after his difficult niece.

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But instead of joining the likes of Helen Mirren, Penelope Cruz, Forest Whitaker, Judi Dench, Sir Ian McKellen, Jake Gyllenhaal, James McAvoy, Joely Richardson, Kate Winslet, Ricky Gervais, Sienna Miller and Thandie Newton at the ceremony in London, he will be busy promoting the film in Los Angeles with a series of TV interviews.

Venus's director Roger Michell and writer Hanif Kureishi will also not be at the Baftas - leaving just Leslie Phillips there in the hope that he can collect an award for Best Supporting Actor.

O'Toole won his only Bafta in 1963 for his portrayal of Lawrence of Arabia and was awarded an honorary Oscar in 2003 for providing cinema with some of its most memorable characters.

The Best Actor award is likely to go to Forest Whitaker for his performance as Ugandan dictator Idi Amin in The Last King of Scotland. He is joint favourite with O'Toole.